The invention relates generally to protection devices, and more particularly to those used in computer power bus lines, which power downstream electronic components and power management circuits.
Modern technologies have allowed more and more computers to be connected to one another by way of networking. Each computer may have numerous peripheral devices connected to it. Peripheral devices include not only the traditional ones such as a keyboard, a mouse, etc., but also those with new applications, e.g., a digital camera. In a typical network system, a hub is connected to a number of nodes, each of which may be connected to a number of sub-nodes. Each node or sub-node may be a computer or a peripheral device. Each sub-node may be connected to additional sub-sub-nodes, and so on. In such a network system, power is typically distributed to the various nodes and sub-nodes, etc. One example of such a network environment relates to the recent USB (Universal Serial Bus) standards, e.g., USB-IF, USB Specification, Rev. 1.1, 1998.
In such a network system, each network node is continuously monitored. Normal operation as well as fault conditions (e.g., overcurrent, over-temperature, under-voltage, etc.) are constantly reported to a control circuit. When a fault condition, e.g., overcurrent condition, occurs at one node or sub-node, it is important that any point of failure not affect the operation of the remaining portions of the network system. In other words, the failure must be localized and isolated in order to achieve high performance in a network system.
Various power bus line protection devices have been proposed. Most conventional protection devices include a power integrated circuit (PIC) switch that uses overload detection circuitry to continuously monitor current flowing to all ports controlled by the switch as well as the temperature of the switch. If the preset current limit of a port is exceeded, the "offending" port is turned off. If the preset temperature limit of the switch is reached as a result of an overcurrent status of a port, for example, all ports are usually turned off without regard to the non-overcurrent status of any of the other ports. This protection scheme has the potential to significantly reduce the dynamic operation range for the switch controlling multiple ports, because if only one port is overloaded, which causes the over-temperature status of the switch, all other ports are turned off nonetheless.
Another proposed protection scheme uses a temperature range for the switch as a reference guide for switching off the ports. If the temperature of the switch reaches the lower limit of the range, an overload detection circuitry monitors the temperature of the switch more closely, but no action is taken, in anticipation of a decrease in the temperature. If the temperature continues to rise and eventually reaches the higher limit of the temperature range, the port is switched off. Such a scheme, however, cannot reliably protect the switch against overload, because the temperature range creates an uncertain overload region. If the temperature of the switch stays near the high end of the range for a relatively long period of time, without ever reaching the higher limit of the range, there is a high probability that the switch will be permanently damaged.
Therefore, there is a need to provide a more reliable protection device and an improved PIC switch that increases the dynamic operation range of the conventional PIC switch, while ensuring normal operations.